The folks from ESPN are running a World Cup of Beer, pitting one malty beverage against another from all 32 nations represented.

Here’s the first tier, where France’s Kronenbourg and Mexico’s Dos Equis advance, largely on the strength of television ads. They beat out South Africa’s Castle Milk Stout and Uruguay’s Patricia. Having had Kronenbourg and Dos Equis, I’m not inclined to think they’d beat out a real milk stout and a brewery known for producing beer with a clean, sweet taste that allegedly comes from the water of an adjacent fruit company. But, I’m not a judge in this contest.

And the first round second tier -

In the group B breakdown, Argentina’s Quilmes, Mythos from Greece, Nigeria’s Guinness Foreign Extra Stout and South Korea’s OB square off, with Nigeria and Argentina advancing for potency and a potential Maradona declaration of retribution.

Group C feature Algeria’s Castel Algerie, England’s Boddingtons, Slovenia’s Lasko and Yuengling from the United States in a tale of three lagers and an ale. England and the U.S. come away clean to advance to the next round.

More soon. Go USA!

Prost,

GG

Opera on Draft

Why the vague headline? Well, I didn’t want to confuse people who might have read entertainment reporter Joe Nickell’s blog post about the same event. And to clear up the tuna and chocolate vaguery, read my foodie blog post here. You’ll understand why I compared opera and beer to tuna and chocolate.

The thing is, Missoula is a haven for great beer, outdoor activities and culture. There’s a reason why everyone who lives here and leaves wants to come back to live here. Whenever our web cams go out, I can get hundreds of E-mails from angry former Missoulians who need to check that cam every day like a crack addiction. Symphony, theater, concerts, you name it, Missoula has it. And the latest addition to our fair mountain berg is The Montana Lyric Opera.

Having grown up an hour from Vienna’s famed opera house, I was subjected to a lot of non-English opera before I learned to appreciate it. But with time, I’ve learned to enjoy opera as one of the most amazing forms of entertainment available.

To that end, the Montana Lyric Opera is putting on Opera on Draft, a special fundraiser for this summer’s performance of Giacomo Puccini’s Madama Butterfly.

Besides gathering on Cinco de Mayo for good beer, you’ll get lessons in how to sing Italian, and you likely won’t need five beers to do it. Though five beers might help with the pronunciation. Just make sure to designate a driver.

Opera on Draft begins at 6 p.m. tonight at the Badlander.

See you there,

GG